Harry Redknapp has launched a passionate defence of Daniel Levy, insisting that the former Tottenham chairman was often blamed for the decisions taken by Joe Lewis and ENIC.
Earlier this summer, Levy suggested that he would get credit for his work at Spurs when he is gone, and in some respects, he has been proven right.
The Tottenham chairman may not have expected to leave as early as he did, but over the last few days, many Spurs fans have thanked him for the way he has built up the club off the pitch.
A lot of Tottenham supporters saw Levy as the main hindrance to the club’s lack of silverware over the last two decades, but Redknapp does not feel that is fair on the 63-year-old.
Harry Redknapp insists Daniel Levy was unfairly criticised at Tottenham
Redknapp was one of just three Tottenham managers who lasted more than two seasons during Levy’s stewardship, and the former Spurs boss admitted that he was shocked by the announcement of his departure.
He defended his former boss, revealing that he found him very easy to work with and insisting that Levy’s hands were often tied due to the decisions made by Joe Lewis.
When asked if he was surprised by Levy’s departure, Redknapp told talkSPORT: “Absolutely out of the blue. I never saw that coming at all. I thought Daniel would be there forever. When someone texted me [the news], I thought, ‘No, you’re having a wind-up’.
“That was his life running that football club, I could never see it coming to an end. I never had any problem with Daniel. I sit here and I don’t have any relationship with him or speak to him, not that I don’t want to.
“I found him very good to work for. He wasn’t at the training ground every day. He wasn’t poking his nose into who should and shouldn’t play. I found him (Levy) very good and helpful to work with. In the background, Joe would be pulling a lot of the strings; that’s how I always felt.
“When I left the club, I think it was certainly more Joe’s decision than Daniel’s. That was my opinion. People do forget that Daniel only had 25 per cent of the club. Joe Lewis was the governor of the football club.
“When I was there, Joe was never around. He never came to games. I think he’s been to around 10 games in 20 years. Maybe once every two years, he’ll come over and watch a match. But Daniel didn’t have as much say in the club as Joe did.
“Joe would have the final say. Whether Daniel spent the money or didn’t, he always had to speak to Joe to get the final word on everything. If Joe didn’t want to spend big money in the transfer market, then Daniel wasn’t able to do that. He took the brunt of the criticism for sure, but it wasn’t always down to Daniel.”
Redknapp says Levy deserves credit for on-pitch performances
The former Spurs boss also questioned the narrative that Tottenham had underachieved on the pitch during Levy’s tenure.
He pointed to the number of top-four finishes that the club achieved over the last two decades and suggested that failure to get over the line and win trophies cannot be put down mainly to the 63-year-old.
Redknapp added: “People have to give him a bit of credit for what he’s achieved there. Okay, the trophies hadn’t come, and maybe us managers should have done a bit better and won a cup somewhere along the line.
“People forget they’ve had a Champions League final, they’ve had Champions League football quite regularly in the last 12-15 years. It hasn’t been all doom and gloom. That stadium, when you go there, is mindblowing. They should be up there and could be up there winning the title in the next four or five years.”
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